Tinpot Tyrant In The Making

by M. Bakri Musa

Someone ought to tell Prime Minister Abdullah that he is not up to the job. Malaysia deserves better. If he truly loves his party and country, as he frequently professes, he should acknowledge his limitations and gracefully pave the way for someone else.

As one prominent Malaysian wrote me, it is a tragedy at this stage of our development to have foisted upon us a leader who is clueless, incompetent and arrogant. He has taken all of us for a ride, he continued.

His is the sombong si bodoh (arrogance of ignorance).

This is not the time to maintain our silence, elegant or otherwise. That would only embolden Abdullah, prodded by his advisors, to pursue his current disastrous path. We already have too many preacher boys who for peanuts would willingly spread his message that the world is flat. The next day and with a few more cheap candies thrown their way, they would preach with even greater gusto that the world is indeed round.

Abdullah’s crude handling of the recent Bersih and Hindraf rallies, the largest in a decade, was merely the latest demonstrations of his ineptness. The choice is not, as he naively put it, between public safety and freedom, rather in enhancing both.

There is no safety without freedom. Suppressed, humans will ultimately erupt like a volcano, and with equally unpredictable devastations. Freedom without safety is anarchy. Safety and freedom are two sides of the same coin; each complements the other and both are hallmarks of civilized societies. “Safety” without freedom is illusory.

Abdullah’s “public safety before public freedom” argument is specious; it only reveals the latent tyrannical streak or prison-warden mentality in him. A few more years of him and Malaysians would lose whatever little freedom we have, and the much-sought safety would still elude us.

Delivering the Message

While many Malaysians share my view of Abdullah, not many have taken upon themselves of conveying this critical message to him. Even if they were, there is no assurance that Abdullah would listen. He has the stubborn streak of a village idiot.

Former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir tried, but his typically blunt and in your face message did not register with Abdullah. He is the typical village penghulu who responds best to cakap selindung, berkias, berpantun, dan bergurindam (indirect, allegorical, poetic, and humorous language), as we say in my kampong.

Next to try was Tengku Razaleigh; he too was direct in frontally challenging Abdullah for the leadership. Like Mahathir, Ku Li too failed.

Recently the MP from Kota Baru, Zaid Ibrahim gently chided Abdullah to be more enlightened in dealing with public dissent: engagement instead of suppression. Zaid not so subtly reminded Abdullah that contrary to his assertion, rallies and demonstrations are very much a part of our culture. Indeed that was how we derailed the Malayan Union proposal and gained our independence.

Musa Hitam recently repeated the same theme. He related his experience in convincing the long-time President of Maldives to be more tolerant of public rallies and expressions of dissent. Musa challenged Abdullah to “Try lah!”

Musa Hitam surprised me. Since receiving his Tunship, courtesy of Abdullah, Musa has been the administration’s chief cheerleader. To Tun Musa, Abdullah could do no wrong. This time however it would be Musa’s turn to be surprised; he too would find that Abdullah is dense to suggestions. Worse, Abdullah would now consider Musa as one of those ungrateful “Melayu mudah lupa,” (Malays who forget easily). Unlike the Maldives President, Abdullah is innately incurious and intellectually lazy, with little capacity for learning.

Musa might also have had better luck had he conveyed his message in private instead of through a public interview.

Understanding Abdullah’s Psyche

Abdullah is your typical Malay leader that we see too often today and in much of our history: not too bright and only too susceptible to flattery. The British read this Malay psyche well, which is how they managed to “advise” the Malay rulers. A perfunctory visit to Buckingham Palace, an exalted Knighthood of some Medieval Order, a modest pension, and the delusion that their throne was on par with the British crown were all that was needed for our sultans to willingly cede Singapore and effectively give up their sovereignty.

President Bush too read Abdullah well; a token visit to the White House silenced Abdullah over American excesses in Iraq and tamed the OIC that he chairs. With Abdullah’s silent submission, the leadership of the Muslim world by default now falls onto such characters as Iran’s wily Ahmadnejad.

Closer to home, Singapore’s Senior Minister Lee who despite his close association with many would-be Malay leaders during his university years in Britain, utterly failed to comprehend the Malay psyche. Surprisingly, the younger Lee despite his lack of close association with Malays seemed to have read Abdullah better.

Lee, Jr., has also learned well from history, specifically from the British. That is, Malay leaders are suckers for flattery. Praise them effusively and they would willingly part with their prized heirlooms.

It is instructive that Singapore was the first foreign country to invite Abdullah for a state visit. Its leaders were uncharacteristically effusive in praising him. As a result, while earlier sultan would readily ceded Singapore, Abdullah now readily gives up a big chunk of the southern tip of the peninsula.

Singapore’s institutions, undoubtedly prompted from high above, have also been generous in honoring senior Malaysian personalities. Witness the recent awarding of an honorary doctorate to the Sultan of Johore by the National University of Singapore.

Many members of Abdullah’s inner circle were invited to address prominent think tanks and other institutions in the Republic. They were flattered by such invitations and could hardly hide their pride back home; an implicit acknowledgement of Singapore’s successful strategy! UMNO Youth leaders now regularly play golf with their PAP counterparts. No marks for predicting who would win those tournaments!

Senior UMNO statesmen would do well to copy Singapore’s techniques to reach Abdullah. Praise the man sky high and humor his ego. Once you have him in your pocket, the rest would be easy.

Massaging Abdullah’s Ego

Abdullah is a simple man and not too bright to boot; massaging his ego should not be a challenge, despite his recent fondness for the lifestyle of the rich and famous, at public expense of course. Apart from the prerequisite luxurious corporate jet, he is now partial to fancy sailing yachts. Never mind that he hasn’t a clue what a jib or sheet is. Yachting after all is synonymous with affluence and elegance; it is the style he is after. Again, typically Malay! He is too much of a klutz to indulge in such royal sports as polo and horse riding; besides those were already the hobbies of his predecessor. No glamour in imitating!

Humor Abdullah! Tell him he deserves all those perks after years of patient and loyal public service. Treat him like Sukarno. Make him take as many overseas trips as possible; he is useless at home anyway. The more he is away, the less likely for him to wreck damage on the country.

In short, treat him like a sultan; he already relishes that role. Indulge his fantasy. Notice that his wife is now being regularly referred to as the First Lady. And she and him are absolutely lapping it up.

There is only one slight problem. Who is going to mind the store? For Abdullah to play the sultan, he would need a capable deputy who would be the de facto chief executive. We had precedence for this. While Tunku Abdul Rahman was enjoying himself as the “world’s happiest Prime Minister,” he had the capable Tun Razak running the show.

It is said that under the old Soviet System, its ambassadors were merely titular heads of their respective embassies; the Chefs De Mission (DCM) were the real power. In that way the Ambassador could hobnob with the native elite while important consular work like spying would still be carried out by the DCM. Further, if the Ambassador were to be drunk or in any way caught in a compromising situation, state secrets would be safe, as he knew nothing!

The snag here is that Abdullah’s current deputy, Najib Razak, is equally inept. Making Abdullah dump Najib would be tough as they are both pathologically dependent on each other. Each harbors the other’s dark secrets. The only way would be to disguise the maneuver as an attempt to spite Mahathir. Abdullah is not fond of Najib anyway; Mahathir hoisted Najib upon Abdullah and he was too meek to object. I am certain that Abdullah is still chafing at that. Dumping Najib would even the score for Abdullah with respect to Mahathir.

While Abdullah may be susceptible to such a suggestion, his hangers-on and courtiers would not. Those who depend on his “protection” would stand to lose the most and would thus readily see through and object to the plan. However, if we flatter Abdullah enough, he would unhesitatingly give up his hangers-on. Earlier Malay leaders had given up even more when they were sufficiently flattered.

The alternative of doing nothing would be to doom our nation on an irreversible course towards perpetual mediocrity. As for Abdullah, there is only one thing worse than having a tyrant as a ruler, and that would be to have a not-too-smart one.

“Someone ought to tell Prime Minister Abdullah that he is not up to the job. Malaysia deserves better. If he truly loves his party and country, as he frequently professes, he should acknowledge his limitations and gracefully pave the way for someone else.”

I’m tempted to say “Dream on!” but nobody is that politically naive as to expect a Prime Minister of a country like Malaysia to acknowledge his own character flaws and poor leadership qualities and call it quits. The only Prime Minister of Malaysia to have voluntarily given up power was Hussein Onn but he did so on genuine health reasons, only to regret later that he had unwittingly helped an autocratic leader take over the reins â€“ someone who was later labeled a â€œtin-pot dictatorâ€ by the U.S. Department of State officials.

Dr Bakri,
You have said it all. What more can I add to all these legitimate insults. You know the Malay psyche well. The UMNO Malays hero-worship him and treat like an Emperor in return for positions and perks. This idiot thinks he is infallible and next to the Almighty in intelligence.

Abdullah is veryaptly described. He is egoistic, like glamour, show off, and most importantly usless!!! He does not admit it. Ask any man onthe street(not UMNO members please), their precise word for him-USELESS!

It is very hard to unseat him because the UMNO people are fery fond of him. He let them have field days and free from problems. Who want to kill a goose that lays the golden eggs for you?
To the government servants, he gave more goodies to them than TDM ever gave in the latters tenure as PM

M Bakri Musa view that the best thing this PM can do is to pave the way for the next leader is worth considering. My only problem is that I don’t think he can do that either.

Its true, this PM does not have the skills to take this nation to the next level. This PM ideologically is not bad but politically, he is really bad. But if you look at the bench of UMNO leader and opposition do not have anyone to that can do it either. Najib is obviously worst than this PM, Hissamuddin, KJ, Muhiyiddin? None of them even have the right idea, despite their skills. Years of NEP have dulled their sense of principles and all they have are political skills not ideological ones.

The people that have the right ideas Zaid Ibrahim, Malek Imtiaz, Raja Nazrin, these people don’t have the political skills to carry the days.

The sad thing is that if you look around the best choice among Malays to lead for reformist is still Anwar, at least he has officially subscribed to the right ideas and have the skills but he is untrustworthy and will betray it. It reflects the sad state of affairs.

It is repeatedly stated that Indians are marginalized being the third community. Is being the third a dilemma or stigma? Why would countries of the world go out to olympics to compete knowing very well that only three medals are available?

The simple analogy above will tell us, that all of them happy having competed on level playing fields.

Perhaps I should say there are unseen forces working stealthily to make him appear like he could be the tin-pot dictator that Mahathir was. When that fails, more blame could then be put on his shoulders.

â€œAbdullah is your typical Malay leader that we see too often today and in much of our history: not too bright and only too susceptible to flattery.â€ Bakri Musa

As they say, â€œGaya mesti ada.â€ I see that happening in the corporate world. If nobody flatters them, they flatter themselves. The sad thing, like AAB, they donâ€™t understand that flattery kills their entrepreneur and mental capabilities. The best example is GLC, where management is top-heavy and at every level, you would find a Tan Sri or a Datuk. Is there any GLC headed by an Encik? And is there any GLC that doesnâ€™t need taxpayers and pension fund rescue package? (The exception is MAS, which is headed by an Encik who is conferred a Datukship after proving his performance â€“ but again the man heading MAS is not a Malay).

â€œIt is instructive that Singapore was the first foreign country to invite Abdullah for a state visit. Its leaders were uncharacteristically effusive in praising him. As a result, while earlier sultan would readily ceded Singapore, Abdullah now readily gives up a big chunk of the southern tip of the peninsula.â€

Your characterization of the Malay psyche fits Abdullah Badawi like a crown fits the head of Englandâ€™s monarch.

One does not need to know Abdullah Badawi up close and personal to be convinced that he behaves from day one, like the last to be crowned Sultan of the state of Malaysia. [deleted]

â€œThe Indians wiil kick, shout and scream, but come election day they will vote MIC and BN. What a pathetic lot. You get what u vote forâ€¦plain and simpleâ€ Dominique

Therefore, all BN candidates from MIC were elected in the 2004 GE.

By comparison, the Chinese are not much wiser. A large majority of the Chinese in the constituencies of Petaling Jaya N. and Petaling Jaya S. voted for BN. Consider the fact that the Chinese in these 2 constituencies are the most highly educated group. What a pathetic lot.

our choice of leadership is currently limited.Annuar offers the best option when compared to the sea of faces in UMNO.He has served his time in prison under dubious circumstances and have lots of time to reflect on his past whilst incarceration.I believe this will put him in good stead.Our country is facing a critical period where to allow B.N to rule another term would be disastrous.We have to change the course of history and to do that we have to inject new faces from outside UMNO.UMNO is too entrenched in corruption and political patronage.It will not change overnight.The only recourse is to change the goverment.Allowing them to remain with a reduced two third majority is not an option. UMNO simply has to go for the sake of the country.B.N has lost whatever moral authority it has to govern.

By comparison, the Chinese are not much wiser. A large majority of the Chinese in the constituencies of Petaling Jaya N. and Petaling Jaya S. voted for BN. Consider the fact that the Chinese in these 2 constituencies are the most highly educated group. What a pathetic lot”

Not a suprise to me though..Vote rigging perhaps?…..the whole election is just a media circus..[deleted]

“UMNO simply has to go for the sake of the country.B.N has lost whatever moral authority it has to govern.” Richard Teo

Oh yes! We know that. But how do we make UMNO disappear? They are likely to win and retain the two thirds majority needed to continue to amend the Constitution – especially now that the Malays have been alienated by the actions of HINDRAF leaders. Fence sitters among the Malays have made their way back to UMNO with their sense of security violated by the actions of HINDRAF!

Anwar is tainted with the kind of race politics he now wants to distance himself from. Credibility will always be an issue with him. He may have spent some six years in jail and may have seen the light. But it does not change the fact that PKR is mostly a splinter group of UMNO whose Malay leaders were once UMNOristas who advocated the same policies that brought the country to where it is today.

Few days ago, My Relation at Johor near Taman University area. Policeman stops him and requesting for his hand phone to check any HINDRAF message displayed. He refuses to show, but the Policemen insist at last he has to show them.

What is happening? I think the Police should stop all this nonsense and do not disturb the public especially Indians.

I feel very shame on them, whereby there is a lot of unsolved case dangling and no action taken and their mind revert to â€œHINDRAFâ€ PM should advice to stop and carryout their duties.

Can anybody answer this question can the Police stop and request for our hand phone, we may have confidential or personnel issue. Firstly we must have truest on the Police but the rakyat itself lost their truest.

Where should complaint to be made?

It looks like the NGO and MIC wake up from the sleep. HINDRAF is the heroes nobody can deny. The lawyers and 31 hindraf team was arrested by Police /Badawi / AG framed by them, because they cannot face the truth. If badawi talk about Islam Hadhari and he fear of God, he should produce the Hindraf lawyers to open court. The lawyers sue them on two occasion but what happen the case. The truth will revile one day God is watching they are going to pay very heavy penalty soon. INDIAN SHOULD START TO PRAY

T.G.I.F.! It’s Friday again and time for AAB to start his regular nightmare! Come Saturday and he will be ready with his “armour” and his troops to stage war against those who had voted him into power. Benar-benar KACANG LUPAKAN KULIT!!!! UNGRATEFUL IDIOT!